Edmonton, Alberta – With Jordan Leopold scheduled to make his Avalanche debut Saturday night against the Vancouver Canucks, coach Joel Quenneville will have to sit one of his current defensemen. Unless a trade happens before then, that is.

“Sometimes they’re made for you,” Quenneville said Thursday morning when asked about his possible decision.

There are indications the Avs may be trying to move one of their seven healthy defensemen via a trade. One NHL management source said Thursday the Avs have had discussions with a couple of teams about defenseman Ossi Vaananen.

Vaananen, 26, entered Thursday’s game with the Edmonton Oilers with two points and a plus-6 in 23 games.

If no trade is made, Quenneville will ponder who to sit before Saturday’s game with the Canucks. Quenneville said Leopold should be ready to go after missing the first 25 games following hernia surgery.

“Maybe we’ll move it around a bit, keep everybody playing,” Quenneville said. “We’ve got some good options, so as we go along, each and every day, we’ll probably face a different option.”

Avalanche defender Ken Klee, who had three assists in the first period of Thursday’s game, said the present defensive core is bracing for a change.

“We know management will do what’s in the team’s best interests,” Klee said. “It’s something’s that out of our hands as players.”

Footnotes

Quenneville indicated Jose Theodore will start against the Canucks. Theodore is 3-0 against Vancouver this season. … Winger Antti Laaksonen returned after a one-game benching. Cody McCormick and Kurt Sauer were the healthy scratches for Colorado. … Oilers veteran Ryan Smyth’s first-period goal was the 250th of his career. … Marek Svatos broke a three-game pointless streak with a second-period goal for Colorado.

“This is one of the great jobs in all of sports,” Colorado AD RIck George said Sunday. “There's not a better job in America than here in Colorado." Translation: If you’re not here to win championships, pal, don’t join the party.

If recent history is any indication, Helton likely faces an uphill climb to become the first Colorado player inducted into Cooperstown because of the bias that voters tend to hold against hitters who spent their careers playing home games at elevation.

The inspiration for the nickname came from "the outdoors, the sunshine, that feeling you get when you live here in Colorado," Vibes general manager Chris Phillips explained during Monday's name unveiling.